USDA Urges Holdout States to Match Federal Diesel Tax Relief
USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins said in an October 29 press release that 31 states have taken or announced action to complement President Trump's Executive Order 14435, Emergency Tax Relief on Diesel Fuel, signed October 5. The order directed Treasury and the IRS to suspend federal penalties and excise-tax enforcement for on-road use of off-road dyed diesel during harvest season.
The IRS followed with guidance IR-2026-122 on October 14, waiving penalties for on-road dyed-diesel use, and IR-2026-125 on October 21, easing related reporting and recordkeeping rules. Rollins said the federal tax alone totals 24.4 cents per gallon, and USDA estimates the combined federal-state relief could reach more than $640 million across roughly 224.6 million harvested acres.
The release does not name the 31 states or detail what each has done — options described broadly include suspended penalties and changed enforcement practices. Rollins asked remaining governors to "give full and fair consideration" to matching action. USDA said it will keep working with state leaders on implementation and referred questions to DyedDiesel@usda.gov.
What's next
- Federal relief runs under EO 14435's relief period; no end date stated in this release.
- Watch state transportation and revenue agencies in non-acting states for penalty or enforcement announcements.
- Confirm your state's status directly; USDA's release does not list which states have or have not acted.
All sources
- Secretary Rollins Commends Governors for Taking Action on Emergency Diesel Relief; Encourages Remaining States to Follow Suit — Government site: USDA (.gov), 2026-10-29
